It's so dependent on the person... Good things: Weather in the winter (October-May) (Don't let anyone tell you that the summer heat is okay because it's dry. It isn't. It's hell. 110+ is the norm every day from June to October. It never cools down. Even at night. Your AC bill should be taken into account when you're planning your budget. It will be expensive. If at all possible, find a place to live with a garage or at the very least covered parking.)Cheap housing (It's definitely a buyers/renters market)Scenery

Bad things... I think you should come and see yourself, because maybe you will like it Some of my friends really like it here, but I'm not one of them. I think it really depends on what you're looking for. Like, I take it you are a parent? You may want to read up on the school systems here.

The Desert Botanical Garden is one of my favorite things here, if you're into plants and such. Other than that, there are gorgeous places to visit surrounding Phoenix. If you've never seen Sedona, you need to see it. It's one of the most beautiful natural places I've ever seen.

I've lived in Phoenix area my whole life and aside from the heat, it's a great place to live. Like K8 said, the winters are fantastic, but the summers and AC bills suck pretty hard. We have great forests and camping within 1-2 hours, we are a short 5 hours to Vegas, we've got the Grand Canyon and Sedona (which is really cool, by the way), we've got some pretty cool hiking/day-trip spots and people who weren't raised here usually think the cactus are pretty cool. I think it is a really great place for families too. There are really nice areas in Phx, but also some run-down areas that you couldn't pay me to live in. Mesa, Chandler, Gilbert, Scottsdale, Tempe, Peoria and Glendale are a few of the surrounding cities. What areas are you considering? I know a good real estate agent if you're looking for someone.

Mesa is older and a little run down. The further east you go, the nicer it gets, but if you're working in Phx, you'll have a long drive.

Chandler is my personal favorite (because I was born and raised there). It has some older areas, but also some really nice areas that aren't too far from downtown Phoenix.

Tempe is where ASU is, so the population is pretty young.

Gilbert is further from Phoenix, but a very nice, family oriented place. It used to be very rural, but they have their very own mall now

Scottsdale is nice and centrally located, but it's expensive to live there.

Peoria and Glendale are on the west side of Phoenix, and they feel like more of an extension of Phoenix than different cities. The Cardinals stadium is in Glendale, but other than that, there's not much to see.

The other interesting thing about the area is that you can drive about an hour north and go skiing! The climate of this state is very dependent upon elevation so you get a wide variety. Phoenix is very hot because it is very low.

Some scary things to think about are scorpions, rattlesnakes, killer bees and other interesting critters. It's definitely worth knowing what you should do if you happen to get bitten by one of these fun animals. I have a cheat sheet on my fridge- just in case.

I live in North Phoenix, which is more spread out like Glendale. My gym is in Glendale. Glendale is really not much to talk about. Lots of homes in the middle-lower price range. Like Elly said, Scottsdale is the hoity-toity part with trendier, more expensive living.

There's some good shopping in Phoenix if you're into that. I love Desert Ridge. Marshalls, Kohls, DSW, all in one place- plus Fatburger which is definitely worth a try if you've never been. (They even have a veggie burger for us vegetarians)

Odd things I didn't know before I moved here:

You can carry your gun anywhere you want, and people do. It took me aback at first to be standing in line at Starbucks behind someone packing heat.

There are speed cameras on the highways- your ticket shows up in the mail.

If your pool isn't heated, it's only really useful for 2 months of the year (April and May) and is too cold or too hot the rest of the year.

I heard about the scorpions. k8yk I just may be asking you for that survival list..lol..

ellyfranklin-We will be moving to Gilbert. My husband's cousins moved from here 3 years ago and is a teacher in Gilbert. My parents will be looking in Mesa, they are on a fixed income and want to live in a senior community.

I can't wait to see Sedona and the Grand Canyon. I don't think it will be this trip though, I really want the kids to see it too. I am glad to hear that there is a beach not that far. We also would love to see the botanical garden.

We are going to rent while we look for the "PERFECT HOME" for us. We also need jobs since neither one of us can transfer. We decided to take a chance.

I would rather the heat because I have asthma and chronic sinus conditions that do not allow me to recover from the common cold easily.Not thrilled about the gun thing but here they probably have the guns too but you just don't see them.My boys would LOVE to see those big trucks!!! I guess I will have to slow down on the roads...lol

Thanks, jlbenitz - Since I restarted Monday I have been expanding my eating and not just limiting it to the MIMs. It was a good way for me to start though. They fill me up and I don't want the other ...